Terri’s Story on Tapping

Have you ever noticed that when you feel stressed or upset about something you sometimes put your head in your hands? Or rubbed your eyebrow or temple when you feel stressed or worried? Maybe if something startles you, you may put your hand on your chest? It’s just something we intuitively do to feel calmer. People touch, hold, pat, and rub ourselves for comfort. We feel powerful emotions… some feel bad, some feel good. We talk to ourselves… even though it is often negative. Emotional Freedom Technique or EFT is a soothing technique that works with the body’s energy system that releases feelings of stress, anxiety, pain and distressing thought. Commonly called, “Tapping” for short because it is done by literally tapping specific points with your fingertips.

Simply stated, it works on the body’s energy system and meridians. Meridians are our body’s electrical circuits. They are the roads our energy uses to travel from all parts of our body to and from our brain. Meridians are what Chinese health practitioners discovered some 5,000 years ago, and form the basis for acupuncture. But with Tapping, we don’t use any needles! You can stimulate these meridian energy points by tapping on them with your fingertips. I like to call these points, “special bundles of energy that can help you feel better”.

You probably already do some of them without even knowing. Have you ever noticed that when you feel stressed or upset about something you might put your head in your hands? Or if you feel a headache you may want to rub you head or neck? Or if something suddenly startles you, you may grab or put your hand on your chest? Those are things we intuitively do to feel calmer and in-control of your emotions. Because EFT is done by literally tapping on specific points with your fingertips, it is commonly called “Tapping” for short.

As Tapping is being introduced to students of all ages, research demonstrates Tapping can improve academic performance, decrease negative emotional states, improve self-esteem and resilience and better solve negative social interactions. According to Harvard Medical School “Tapping is proving to be a powerful, well-researched technique”.

It’s easy to do ‘Tapping’! Let me warn you, at first it might look weird because you’re going to be tapping on your face and body with your fingers, but just play with it for a while. You’ll be surprised after Tapping how big-deal things just won’t bother you so much, it’s amazing. Express your feelings as you Tap solidly yet gently on the energy points explained below, using two or three fingers with either hand, or both hands. As long as you stimulate the points, it doesn’t matter. This is why Tapping is called “acupressure for the emotions.” Use the same amount of pressure you would use if you were to tap your fingers on a table, knock, knock, knock … You want to make contact, but not cause discomfort. Tap roughly five to seven times on each point. While there are many more Tapping or energy points you can use, I will just describe the most commonly used points. If one point is uncomfortable to do (like the one under the arm), then just skip it. You can Tap on either the right side or left side it doesn’t matter. The order is not crucial either and you can even do the points in reverse. The good news is, Tapping is very forgiving. A great thing to remember is this, you can’t do Tapping wrong. So, just do it!

Here’s the basic Tapping Points:

Karate Chop – the outside edge of your hand, below your little finger. Inner Eyebrow – on the end of either eyebrow, near the bridge of your nose. Side of Eye – the outside of either eye, on the bone. Under the Eye – about an inch below either eye, on the bone. Under the Nose – above the lip. Chin – below your lower lip, where your chin starts. Collarbone – the inside end of either collarbone, below your throat. Under Arm or Armpit – about four inches down, on the side of your rib cage. Top of the Head – in line with your ears on the top of your head. When you feel like you’re done Tapping take a Deep Belly Breath. (Stick out your tummy and breathe down deep then exhale).